The Wall Dividing Us
by cobrafantasies
Summary: Joey mistakenly smashes a hole in the wall dividing his and Rachel's bedrooms. This accidental peephole may bring the two closer than ever.
1. Chapter 1

**Author:** Jen

 **Author's Note:** Back to Joey and Rachel. I would love any reviews or feeedback!

 **Disclaimer:** Unfortunately, I do not own anything or any of the characters

 **A/N:** Joey mistakenly smashes a hole in the wall dividing his and Rachel's bedrooms. This accidental peephole may bring the two closer than ever.

* * *

I come home from work one night and the second I walk through the door I see Joey quickly stand up straight, guilty holding a beam of wood behind his back.

Unfortunately, a week ago he decided to start building himself a new dresser since his has been falling apart - no surprise since his dresser is the same one he had in his parents' house. I give him a look as I carefully place my stuff down on the kitchen island.

"You know that beam is taller than you right," I say since he clearly thinks he's hiding this piece of wood behind his back.

He looks behind himself and then back at me with a flustered expression.

"Ha, of course," he nervously spills and lays the wood on the floor.

"What's going on?" I inquire suspiciously.

He starts to rub the back of his neck while avoiding eye contact.

"Joey," I speak in an accusing tone. I walk over to him which makes him even more unsettled.

"Okay, look I know you're gonna be mad, but it was an accident I swear. And I'll get it fixed right away!" he frets.

"Get what fixed? What did you do?" I scold him with nervous aggravation growing.

"Okay, I was moving this beam and I ... well I didn't realize how close I was to the... wall, so..." he barely explains.

I catch on and run into his room. My eyes widen and my mouth drops in anger and shock. There is a hole punched into the wall dividing our bedrooms. It's maybe the size of two fists.

"Joey! I can't believe you!" I yell in frustration. I kneel down to look through the hole and see my bed on the other side.

I rest my head against the wall, annoyed with the situation.

"I'm gonna fix it. Honestly, don't worry it'll be fixed in no time," he tries to assure me.

I get up to face him again.

"You are sure you know how to fix this?" I test him.

"Yes, I just need to make another trip to the hardware store and it will be good as new," he tells me.

"It better be," I warn him and I point my finger in his face, which he actually backs away from as if threatened by my tiny finger. I feel empowered by his reaction and walk away with my head tall. I walk into my room and stare at the dumb hole staring back at me. I head across the hall to Monica's to cool off and hopefully get some home cooked food.

* * *

The next night, I get home and walk into my room to see the same hole exactly as it was. I storm into Joey's room, but he's not there. I angrily make myself a plate of food for dinner as Joey finally comes home.

I cross my arms the second he walks through the door. I cough, a fake annoyed cough to get his attention.

"I know I know, I got all the stuff," he quickly defends and holds up cans from the hardware store.

"What took you so long to go to the store?" I complain.

"I was trying to match the paint! I still don't think I got it though," he explains.

"Joey who cares about the damn paint, just fix the hole!"

His eyes widen, surprised.

"Okay, I will," he says.

When I finish my dinner, I decide to read a book in my room. I really don't feel like hanging out with Joey since I'm still pissed at him. I'm in my room trying to catch up on some reading. I'm reading a new romance novel. I've been getting into them lately, probably because I'm so single right now. I start to get aggravated when I realize Joey still isn't working on the wall, but I do realize it's late and I would prefer he doesn't keep me up all night, so I don't say anything.

After a while, I hear the muted sound of the tv turn off in the living room and I hear Joey's bedroom door open and close as well. I look up at the stupid hole in the wall as I hear him walk through his room. Lying on my bed makes me pretty much eye level with the hole. I try to go back to reading, but Joey is suddenly making too much noise, shuffling through his drawers, what is he even doing? Finally, he quiets down and I go back to reading until a loud thump startles me and I stare up at the hole with renewed aggravation. That is, until Joey walks right in front of the hole. I'm about to yell at him to keep it down until his body turns and suddenly I realize what I'm seeing. Joey is naked, the lower half of his body lines up perfectly with my view through the hole and I'm staring at his penis. Oh god, that's his penis! My eyes widen as I stay frozen in place. He bends down, picking up underwear or whatever clothes I assume he just took off. In another second he takes a step somewhere else and this newly appointed peephole into his room goes back to showing the empty foot of his bed.

I stay still as a rock, my hands haven't even moved from the page I was flipping in my book. Well, I just saw my friend's penis. Alright, it's fine. Things happen, it's not like I was trying to see it. I didn't make that damn hole in the wall. Okay, nothing to freak out about. I mean I saw Joey's dick - so what? It didn't look too bad - so what? Everyone is a little curious about their friends and other people's bodies. It's not like I went out of my way to look, it was an accident. I look down at my book and try to focus on the small typed words. I keep picturing it.

"Ew, stop," I say out loud to myself and slam my book closed. I get up and press my fingertips to my temples trying to erase the image from my mind. Why do I keep seeing it? Alright, I'm probably just horny, because I haven't had sex in a few weeks - I'm leaving. I walk out of my room and across the hall, straight to Monica's.

I know I was supposed to get my mind off Joey's anatomy, but of course I have to tell her, she's my best friend.

"Well, now we've both seen it," Monica responds lightheartedly after I tell her my strange news.

Monica told me the story a long time ago of how Joey stripped naked the first time they met because he thought she was inviting him in for sex. Typical Joey, I think and I laugh remembering the story, even though I'm really annoyed with him right now.

"Yeah, I guess Phoebe's gotta get on board," I cringe at my awkward joke, but Monica smiles.

"You don't think she has?" Monica challenges my joke.

My eyebrows lift instantly.

"You think she _has_?"

Monica tilts her head from side to side as if weighting the possibility.

"I mean I just figured she has, they are so oddly close," she says.

"But we're all close," I argue with her theory.

"Yeah, but it's Joey and Phoebe. I mean they do stuff all the time we don't know about. They have dinner once a month, we just found out about that. I wouldn't put it past them to say she's probably already seen it for some weird reason," she explains.

I never considered this, but out of everyone in the group Phoebe and Joey are the most plausible pair to think seeing each other naked is the most normal thing.

"I guess they are both immensely comfortable with their bodies," I point out as I'm still thinking it over.

Monica just nods with a chuckle.

"Well, anyway I really came here to get my mind off it. Do you think I have to tell him?" I suddenly ask.

"Tell him what?" Monica asks.

"What I saw," I clarify.

"No! He will never let you live it down. Besides, he should have gotten the hole fixed by now. It's his fault for being lazy," Monica justifies.

I nod in agreement.

"Alright, I better get to bed," she states.

"Me too," I say.

I hug her to thank her for always staying up with me. I head back to my apartment to get some sleep. Tomorrow is finally Friday. I'm excited for the weekend to be here.

* * *

The next night, I come home from work ready to relax for a few days until I see the stupid hole still in my bedroom wall. Now, in getting furious with Joey. What is taking him so long, he has all day to fix this!

I hear him walk through the front door and I march over to him.

"What are you doing? Why isn't the damn wall fixed!" I screech in a high pitched tone.

"I know, I'm sorry," he says hurriedly.

"What the hell were you doing all day?"

"I had an audition and then I had to go back to the store cause I realized I bought the wrong plaster," he tells me.

I let out a tired breath.

"Joey, I'm serious I need you to fix it now," I demand.

He hesitates before answering, with another guilty expression.

"Okay, but I actually have a date tonight..." he says softly.

"Joey," I stare at him in disbelief.

"Come on, please Rach. I promise that I will fix it tomorrow, I swear - really," he pleads.

I breathe out a frustrated sigh.

"Please, just one more night... she's really hot," he whines with a pouting face.

I grunt and roll my eyes.

"Fiiinnnnee," I give in, annoyed.

"Thank you," he celebrates and hugs me, squeezing me around my crossed arms since I refuse to hug him back.

"But I'm getting in bed tomorrow night to a closed and perfect wall," I declare.

"Definitely," he confirms.

* * *

It's nearly midnight and I can't sleep. Joey is on his date and I'm alone in the apartment. I don't know why I can't sleep, maybe it's from being so frustrated with Joey the past few days or maybe I'm a bit sad and jealous that Joey has a date tonight and I don't. I honestly should have called Phoebe to go out and try to meet some guys, but I just wasn't in the mood. I wanted to relax and now I'm sitting in bed, tired and bored.

I decide to read my book. I start reading and it's really starting to get juicy. The main characters are finally getting together and I'm completely enveloped in the book until I hear the front door unlocking.

I figure it's only Joey coming home from his date, but then I hear a women giggling and Joey shushing her. I hear them both stumble towards Joey's room. He's usually really good with not bringing girls back here especially when I could be home. But I know I can't say anything, so I try to focus on my book.

Unfortunately, because of the damn hole he never fixed, I can hear them perfectly. Every sound is traveling right through the stupid opening in the wall. I hear them kissing and the sheets on the bed shuffling. I feel so uncomfortable, but also even more envious because all these sounds are so familiar and I want someone to fall onto the bed with, kissing me. I want a date and a man and sex. Geez, I must be horny. Okay, stop paying attention to them, focus on your book and drown them out.

I continue reading my book and I think I'm falling right back into the text. The man is kissing the woman for the first time, it's sweet and romantic. They are taking a cab back to her place. They are in the bedroom and he's kissing her neck. She starts moaning and I can hear the character moaning. Wow I'm so involved in this fictional world it's like I really hear - oh shit. I'm not hearing the character moan in my mind, I'm actually hearing Joey's date moaning on the other side of the wall.

"You got to be kidding me," I breathe aloud and jump out of my bed. I run across the hall.

* * *

The next morning I drag my feet back across the hall. I walk into the apartment.

Joey sees me in my pajamas, holding my pillow.

"Where'd you go?" he asks confused.

"I slept on Monica's and Chandler's couch last night," I grumble at him as I start walking to my room. I stop right next to him when he presses further.

"Why?"

"Why? You want to know why?" I lean into him, staring right at him. He leans back in his seat to try to create more space between us.

"How about because I now have a sound hole in my wall to listen to every second of you and your date last night," I breathe angrily in his face.

"Oh, sorry," he breathes shyly.

I shake my head and throw my hand up to say, what can we do. I continue walking to my room.

"I wouldn't have brought her back here, but her apartment was just painted," he calls after me.

"Okay," I mumble, not turning back around.

I throw my pillow back on my bed and turn around to find Joey at my doorframe.

"I really am sorry. I'm fixing the wall today and I won't bring any other girls here," he keeps apologizing, making me feel bad now.

I sigh.

"No, it's fine you're allowed to bring your dates here. It was only loud because of the hole, just fix it please," I speak gently.

"I am, it'll be done by the afternoon," he tells me and I nod.

He goes to start on the wall and I take a nap for a few hours. I wake up and sit up in my bed. The hole is finally filled. My side isn't painted but I can smell fresh paint and I assume Joey is painting his side since I was sleeping.

I walk into his room and see him putting on another coat of paint.

"Thank you," I say softly and sit on the edge of his bed as he puts the brush down and starts closing the jar of paint.

"See, I told you it would be done, are you happy Rachel again?" he asks.

I smile at that.

"Yes I'm happy. Happy there will be no more sex noises, no more penises, no more stupid hole," I breathe, relieved.

He stops, looking up at me.

"Penises? You saw ... you _saw_ us last night too?"

I freeze, oh shit.

"No, no I didn't mean that-" I start, getting insanely flustered. Joey gets up from the floor.

"Really no, I didn't see anything I was just saying-that I could have-"

"I didn't know you were into... watching," Joey grins wickedly.

I stand up from his bed, humiliated from his assumption.

"No! I'm not, _I am not_ into that, I wasn't watching or looking at all! Ew, no!" I spill out hurriedly.

"Hey, I'm not judging. I mean I maybe would have liked a heads up-" he starts. My face is beating so red it's nearly burning.

"Joey stop! I don't want to watch anyone, I didn't see anything last night. I was _trying_ to say... I _could_ have saw something... like a penis," I try to cover up my mistake.

He doesn't seem to believe my lame attempt.

"Okay, but if you ever want to-" he begins to suggest something, but I can't even bare to hear what he might be suggesting.

"No, _no_ to whatever you're about to say!" I shout over him.

He keeps smiling at me.

"I didn't watch you guys, really that's gross," I continue to attempt to save my reputation.

"Then, when else would you have seen a penis through this wall?" he challenges and I'm so desperate for him not to believe I like watching people have sex that I just blurt out the truth.

"A few days ago!"

He freezes with his eyebrows raised.

Now, my stomach is knotting a jungle inside of me and I can feel myself sweating from how nervous and embarrassed I am.

"You saw...me?" he tries to clarify, still amused with this whole situation.

"It was an accident, I guess you were changing. I mean you walked in front of it and I looked up for a second, I didn't mean to see anything okay," I start rambling.

I wipe my forehead and look back at him, he's just smiling at me. Of course, he's loving this. I should have known him finding out would be the worst thing.

"You know if you wanted to keep the hole-" he begins and I stop him yet again.

"No. Joey stop, really, it's not funny," I warn him, but this time he's not frightened by my threats.

"Alright, I'll stop, but can you just tell me one thing?" he asks and I roll my eyes knowing I'm going to hate whatever he's about to ask.

"What?" I force out.

"Did you like what you saw?" he grins.

Of course he would ask that. The truth is, it was ... nice. I was maybe, mildly impressed if I took away the embarrassment and shock I was feeling. But I realize if I answer honestly, Joey will get the biggest ego and really never let me live it down.

So, instead I smirk back at him and then shrug my shoulders.

"Eh, it was okay," I respond plainly.

His face drops.

I walk out of his room and he quickly follows me. I can't help, but smile widely.

"Wait, what do you mean _okay_? What was bad?" he presses. I bite back my smile and turn around to face him again.

"I don't know, I'm not going to describe it," I argue.

"You wanna see it again," he offers.

"Joey, _no_ " I stop him as fast as I can. "Don't be gross."

"I'm not being gross, just tell me what was so bad," he tries again. Now, I'm wondering if this is any better than if I had just boosted his ego.

"I never said anything was bad. I just said it was okay. You don't need to make this a big deal," I tell him.

He looks disappointed and I can't believe he's taking this so seriously.

"Joey, it was fine. It was good okay, you're all good down there," I say awkwardly.

He doesn't seem to believe me and shakes his head.

"Fine, whatever," he mumbles and walks back into his room. Now, I feel bad, but what am I going to do, shower him with compliments about his dick? He probably wouldn't believe me at this point anyway. I decide to just get changed and go down to the coffee shop.


	2. Chapter 2

When I get back from the coffee shop I find Joey in my room painting my side of the wall.

"Thanks," I say to him.

He doesn't respond or turn to look at me.

"Joey, come on are you really mad at me?"

"I'm not mad," he says with a tone that says otherwise.

"Joey, stop being a baby, this is so dumb," I argue.

He puts the paintbrush down and puts the lid back on the paint bucket. He stands up, about to grab everything and walk out.

"Joey stop," I reach over and grab his arm so he leaves everything on the ground.

"I lied okay," I admit to him.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean I downplayed my answer so you wouldn't get all big headed over it. Look... I'm sure no women has complained about... you know, your _stuff_ because they don't have to. It's looked nice, alright there's nothing wrong with it," I tell him.

He looks at me surprised, but doesn't say anything else.

"Why were you so hurt about what I said anyway?" I ask him honestly.

He sighs and looks down.

"Because we're not...dating or sleeping together, so I figured you have no reason to lie and I thought maybe that's what every women thinks of it," he answers truthfully.

Now, I feel truly awful. He trusted me, I realize I would think the same thing if he ever made a comment about my body. I would assume he was giving me a real man's opinion and only telling me because he was my friend.

"I'm sorry, I was embarrassed," I confess.

"Me too," he tells me.

I smile at him and he gives me a small smile back.

"And sorry about the whole watching thing," he adds shyly.

"That's okay, but you would really be okay with someone watching you?" I ask.

"Well, not anyone, but it was kind of hot...for you," he says.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I say, trying to decide if I should be offended or not.

"I just didn't think you had a kinky side," he tells me.

I should respond by saying the truth which is I'm not kinky, but instead I suddenly feel an urge to prove myself in front of him.

"Maybe I do have a kinky side," I say in a slightly alluring tone to seem believable.

Joey looks instantly intrigued.

"Really?" he presses.

"Maybe. What difference does it make, you're never gonna find out anyway," I reply.

"You're making me wanna find out," he says in a low tone.

We stay locked in each other's eyes until we both realize we're basically flirting. We both speedily turn to avert our eyes.

"I didn't mean that...I was uh... I am gonna bring this stuff to my room," Joey fumbles to grab everything and exits my room.

I gulp back a sudden abundance of salvia and feel my face getting hot.

* * *

I'm in my bed and I hear the sound of a creaking door. I open my eyes and my vision slowly adjusts to see a dark figure standing in my doorway. I start to feel fear filling in my chest as the shadow approaches my bed. When the dark form reaches my bed, my eyes can finally see it's Joey. My lungs begin to breathe easy again. I'm about to ask him what he's doing up so late or why he's in my room in the middle of the night. Before I get a chance to speak he pulls the covers up and gets into the bed next to me. I don't even pretend that I'm not okay with this. I instantly turn and wrap my arms around him and his arms hold me tightly. I sink my face into his t-shirt smelling his scent against the cotton. His hand brushes my hair back and I pull back so I can look at his face in the dim lighting. He leans in and kisses me. His lips are incredibly soft and he's taking his time to brush them over every inch of mine. He bites lightly down on my bottom lip, making me suddenly drown in need. I climb over him, pushing him onto his back. I think I'm taking charge, but his hand glides up my thigh and pulls my shorts over so his finger can stroke me down my burning area. I keep still and he keeps teasing my entrance. He finally slips a finger inside of me and my mouth hangs open from how good it feels. I close my eyes. I'm about to tell him how much I needed this, how much I want more, but when I open my eyes he's gone. I'm breathing heavy and I'm alone in my bed. I was dreaming.

Oh my god I just had a dream about Joey. I sit up in my bed and stare at the wall across from me. The wall that separates our bedrooms. I think about Joey sleeping in the next room and I think about my dream which I'm a little ashamed to admit turned me on. I stare down at my sheets and run my hand over the empty area next to me. I'm craving a body next to me, someone to curl up to. For a moment, I think about that body being Joey. I shake my head, realizing the thoughts I'm having about my friend - about Joey. God, I need a date.

* * *

The next day I call Phoebe and we set up plans to head out to a bar. When nine pm rolls around I change into a casual red dress and some heels. I come of my room and Joey is in one of the recliners watching tv. He looks up at me.

"Woah, where you going tonight?" he smiles playfully.

"A bar with Phoebe," I gloat and walk over to the counter to find a lipstick in my bag. I hear the tv click off and Joey walks to the kitchen.

"Hm, picking up some guys?"

I smile at him.

"Hopefully," I say.

"Okay, well don't worry you can bring them back here," he tells me.

"Joey, I don't sleep with guys on the first date, I'm not gonna go home with a stranger from a bar and who knows if I'll meet anyone anyway."

"Okay sure, like you can't get every guy in the bar."

"No, I'm not sure I could," I reply honestly.

He sneers at my response.

"Okay what have you done with Rachel and who am I talking to?" he teases.

"What are you talking about?" I laugh, putting my lipstick down.

"The Rachel I know is confident and knows how beautiful she is," he tells me.

I feel my cheeks blush at this.

"That's sweet, Joey," I bite the inside of my lip and look down at my bag.

"And she does sleep with guys on the first date," he adds in a sly voice.

My head shoots back up and I let my mouth drop open to display shock.

"She just tells everyone she doesn't," he grins knowingly.

I keep my fake shocked and offended expression, but he sees right through it.

"She does not!" I can't help, but smile as I say it. I try to draw back my smile, but he snickers at me. I zip up my purse and walk to the door.

"I'll be returning home tonight _alone_ ," I emphasize.

"Have fun," he replies and turns to return to his chair and tv.

"Thanks," I whisper more under my breath as I watch him walk to the recliner. I walk out and meet Phoebe downstairs.


	3. Chapter 3

Phoebe and I get to the bar and order two drinks before sitting down.

"I really needed to get out," I tell her.

"I know, when was your last date?" She asks me.

"Probably a month ago by now, maybe more," I try to count the weeks.

She shakes her head.

"I know it's getting bad, last night I had a dream about Joey," I suddenly admit to her.

"Oooh really, what about?" she inquires.

I realize I can't tell her what really happened in my dream.

"Oh nothing too exciting. I don't know, we were in the apartment and," I start to make up a dream, but two men walk over to us and introduce themselves. I'm happy to escape the conversation I stupidly started with Phoebe.

We are talking with the guys for a while. I'm looking at my guy, his name is Craig. He's really cute, he is, and he seems sweet, although they all do at first. We're laughing and Phoebe seems really into her guy. I watch her laugh and playfully hit his shoulder. I look back at Craig. I should be into him, I should be excited about him. I think about whether I would like to kiss him and I just don't want to. I don't know why.

After a few hours, Phoebe says they are going to another bar. She invites me, but I tell her I think I'm going to head home. She and Craig seem upset with this decision. I tell them I'm not feeling well and they let me go. Craig gives me his number, but I doubt I'm going to call him. I take a cab ride home by myself.

* * *

The next day, I spend the morning at the coffee shop with Monica and then walk back up to my apartment around noon. I walk in and see Joey sitting at the island. When he sees me, he instantly looks excited.

"Hey Rach, you have a message," he beams and presses the play button on the machine before I even say a word.

It's Craig from the bar saying he had a great time and would love to see me again. Phoebe probably gave him my number, dammit Phoebe I didn't care about this guy.

Joey is smiling, waiting for a response from me. I don't want to look lame or make up some excuse as to why I'm not into this guy so I go along with it.

"Yes, we have a good time," I smile like the message made me happy.

Joey is very enthusiastic about this.

"Yeah, you got home pretty late last night, but I'm sure nothing happened right?" he emphasizes, obviously hinting at whether I broke my no sex with strangers or on a first date rule. Again, I strangely feel the need to prove something to him, like how I falsely have an amazing sex life. I don't know what's happening, but I just keep lying to him.

"Well, I may have made a small exception last night," I giggle softly.

"Yeah? Was he... kinky at all?" he surprises me by asking. Keeping up with these lies is already becoming stressful. I feel my cheeks blushing as I try to decide what to answer.

"Um, not so much," I say quietly and I go to grab myself a water from the fridge. I have my hand on a bottle of water when Joey asks me another question.

"Well, what about in the dream you had about me?"

I stop dead in my tracks, my body stays halfway in the fridge. I slowly take the water bottle and stand up. I close the fridge.

I smile at him, a terrified smile.

"What dream?" I ask.

"Phoebe told me you had a dream about me," he shares smugly.

Oh my god why would she do that? I didn't even tell her what the dream was!

"Who said there was any sex in the dream?" I nervously counter.

"No one, I was just hoping there was," he growls kiddingly. If only he knew how much I was actually hoping to have sex with him.

"Well, I'm not going to tell you," I decide.

"That means it was a sex dream!" he calls me out and my face get even more flushed. I walk out of the kitchen quickly so he won't see. He gets up and follows me.

"No it doesn't. I just don't want to tell you," I state as firmly as I can. I stop in the middle of the living room to turn back to him, hoping my blushing face isn't giving me away.

"Cause of the sex," he grins, still trying to confirm it.

"No! Maybe it was just too gross," I try.

"For me? I don't think so," he argues with another broad grin.

I shake my head frustrated. I'm not about to tell him my dream, that's so embarrassing especially now that I'm wishing it actually happened.

"Joey stop, there was no sex," I tell him, but I think he's choosing not to believe me.

I continue walking to my room and Joey continues to follow me.

"Okay, just tell me where it happened?" he presses from the doorway.

"Why?" I sigh, sitting down on my bed.

"So, I can get the picture in my mind," he says.

"Joey, no, there's nothing to picture," I raise my voice and then I realize I'm sitting right where it happened. The dream flashes back to me right as I'm staring at him. I feel instantly embarrassed and so I grab my pillow and throw it at him.

"Get out," I scold him.

"Did we have a pillow fight?" he won't stop.

"Joey!" I yell and run towards to the door to slam it. He backs away snickering as i push him out of the room and slam the door closed.

"Okay, we can talk about it later," he calls from the other side of the door.

"No we won't!" I call back and he finally stops and walks away.

* * *

A while later I come out of my room and find Joey watching tv. He looks up at me. I don't say anything and walk to the kitchen. He turns the tv off and walks over.

"Hey, Rach you're not mad at me are you?" he asks.

I take a moment to hold back my frustration.

"I don't get why you care so much, it's not real," I say.

"Exactly, it's just for fun," he tells me.

He waits for me to answer, but now I am aggravated. I'm mad that he keeps shoving this in my face. Instead of actually getting to kiss him and undress him and bring him to my bed, I have to talk about this embarrassing dream.

"So, you're not mad right?" he asks again and now I react off my frustration - I think it's the sexual frustration more than the anger talking. I march right up to him and he doesn't expect me to get so close.

"No, I'm not mad. Let's talk about it. Better yet, why don't we recreate it!" I proclaim like it's a brilliant idea.

His expression turns to confusion.

"What?" he says, a bit shaky.

"Yeah, lets do it, lets really paint the picture," I say and I start lightly pushing him. He takes small steps backwards with every push of my hands against his chest.

"This is what you wanted isn't it?" I test him, seeing how uncertain he looks.

"Uh, Rachel..." he chuckles nervously and I'm still forcing him backwards until he reaches the doorframe of my bedroom. He grabs onto the frame.

"Okay ... I get it, I'm sorry," he says.

"I'm not mad," I say in a high pitched tone which makes his eyebrows knit together in a worried expression.

"I want you to know every detail," I whisper seductively and I grab his arm and pull him into my room.

"Rachel what are you doing?" he insists and pulls away from me, moving towards the wall.

"You're the one that's so interested, aren't you curious?" I challenge him. I step up to him again and this time he instantly backs into the wall. I smile at him.

He stops and just waits, unsure of what I'm about to do now. I watch him, he's breathing slightly heavier, he's nervous, but he's also not running. I suddenly snap out of the power crazed mode I was in and realize how close I am to him. How much I want to kiss him.

We both stand silently for a moment and I think, what if I just do it? What if I just lean in? So, I do. I start to lean in and he doesn't move. I'm moving so slowly, waiting for him to run, to stop me, but he doesn't. My lips reach his. I press my mouth against his and his lips are just as soft as they felt in my dream. I draw back even slower and open my eyes. He opens his and looks at me. He doesn't say anything, it's too long I think.

I step back and he still doesn't move.

"I...I'm sorr-" I start, but he leans foward and kisses me back. He's kissing me hard and I fall into him as he wraps his arms around me. This is all I wanted. His lips are over mine, his fingers digging into my back. He arms lift me and I wrap my legs around him as he carries me to my bed. He rests me down and lies over me, still not letting my lips go. My body is throbbing with excitement, with arousal, with anticipation.

He moves to my neck until I breathe out: "Are we really doing this?"

I think I only said it to make sure this isn't another dream.

He stops and picks his head up.

"I ... think so?" he says, basically asking me if he's supposed to stop. Nothing would make me stop him. I grab his neck and pull him back to me. I feel his hand slip under my shirt and it runs up my skin.

I can barely breathe with how he's molesting the skin on my neck, he definitely leaving a mark. He goes back to my lips and then begins to move down to my chest. He shoves my shirt up so his lips can reach every inch of skin possible.

Maybe it's a combination of how long it's been mixed with my newfound desire for him, but I'm in pure heaven feeling his lips everywhere and his warm hands roaming all over my body. That is, until he stops and my body turns cold the second he takes his lips and hands off me.

"Wait - what are we doing?" he suddenly asks.

I barely move as I need his lips back on me, come back to me I scream in my head.

"Huh?" I say barely audible.

"You and Ross have a history, I can't - you're my best friend's ex. I can't do this to him," he frets as he keeps backing away, distancing his body from mine more and more. No come back.

He sits on the edge of the bed and runs his hand through his hair, shaking his head. I don't know why this matters so much to him. How are we hurting Ross? Ross and I are broken up, I don't belong to him. I sit up as Joey gets completely off the bed and stands up. I can't even bring myself to stand, sitting up was a big effort when my body is still stirring in need.

"Joey-" I start.

He looks back at me.

"I'm sorry Rach, I don't know what I was thinking," he says, putting all the blame on himself when I was the one who dragged him into my room and forced myself on him.

"You know what, its fine, it was just a kiss. We can just pretend this never happened right? Nothing happened," he confirms more for himself, but looks to me for agreement.

I swallow my burning desires down.

"Okay," I reply.

"Okay," he says and then he's staring at me. Our eyes are locked again and heated silence surrounds us. I'll feel the urge to jump on him again if he doesn't stop soon. He shakes his head and looks away.

"Okay," he repeats and then walks out of my room.

* * *

The next day is luckily a Monday, so I can distract myself with work. I didn't see Joey this morning, I normally never do seeing that he sleeps in, but I'm sure when I get home we will awkwardly avoid eye contact. We probably won't know what to talk about, since we'll both be trying not to bring up what happened. I feel bad, I caused this mess and I don't want it to be awkward between us. We live together and we're friends. No matter what kind of weird crush or attraction I have towards him, that makes my skin honestly tingle just from imagining doing things with him, I have to make this right.

At five, I head home, planning on apologizing to Joey. I walk in the apartment and call for him.

"Joey?"

"Yeah, in here," he calls from his room which has the door ajar.

I walk over and push his door open. He's sitting at the end of his bed, taking his shoes off.

I walk in front of him, but keep a normal distance from him. He looks up at me.

"What's up?" he asks.

"I want to clear the air. I'm sorry about what happened yesterday. I know, we said nothing happened, but I need to say sorry. I don't want you to stop talking to me," I tell him.

He gives me a funny look.

"Why would I stop talking to you?" he questions me seriously.

"Cause things would be awkward and we probably would've avoided each other for a couple days, but I don't want that to happen. Let's just move past the awkwardness, it's out in the open and now it's forgotten, right?" I proclaim cheerfully, even though I'm sad we're pushing any possibility of us getting together under the rug.

He displays a small smile. He doesn't say anything for a few seconds. Is he uncomfortable, I can't tell.

"Forgotten," he finally says softly.

I assume that's him confirming what I said.

"Forgotten," I repeat just as softly as him because he's just looking at me and lately I cant help, but get lost in those coffee brown eyes of his.

I see his hand start to move and watch as he lazily reaches for my wrist but let's it fall from his hand after a light tug towards him. I stand in the same spot, feeling my knees weakening from even the possibility that something might happen, that he might even want something to happen.

"What?" I laugh, thinking maybe it's just a game and I shouldn't get hopeful.

He reaches again, this time taking a firm hold of my wrist and actually pulling me towards him. I end up standing in between his legs. I hold onto his shoulders for balance. I look down at him feeling my skin heating up intensely. I bite the inside of my lip, trying to control my urges to act like an animal around him.

"I thought you said-" I whisper.

"Maybe I was wrong," he whispers back and now my body is pulsating waiting for him to touch me all over, to tear my clothes off, to throw me on his bed.

I press my lips together, not sure how to even respond when I don't even want to discuss this - I never had an issue to begin with. His eyes travel down my body. I don't even care, in fact it turns me on since it's Joey blatantly harassing me with his eyes.

"What about Ross?" I finally whisper. I'm not about to stop again if we're going to attempt this a second time. He looks back up at me.

"Maybe no one has to find out," he continues to whisper as if our friends are outside his room.

"They won't," I whisper back firmly.

He doesn't say anything else and I take that as my go ahead. I lean down until my lips reach his and already I feel like I've been deprived of his lips for an eternity when it's only been a day. He opens his mouth and I slip my tongue into his. He responds positively to this and explores his tongue with mine.

I feel his hands on the back of thighs. I wore a skirt to work today so he can probably feel how hot my skin feels against his bare hands. His hands glide up to my ass. I wrap my arms securely around his neck and then swing each leg over his so I can sit on his lap. He pushes me even closer the second I sit down on him. We haven't stopped kissing and when I say he so easily turns me on, I'm not kidding. I'm already losing control, I'm already dying with urges to move faster, harder... but I don't want him to think I'm like a rowdy teenager with no control. And I want to enjoy this, but it's just been too long now and I also keep worrying he's going to stop things again. As if going faster would change his mind if he didn't want this.

His hands move to the top of thighs now that I'm seated on his lap and they slide quickly under my skirt. Instantly, my dream flashes back to me, how ironic this is the first thing he does and now my dream is about to be real. But he doesn't pull my underwear aside and tease me with his fingers. He grabs a hold of the waistband of my panties and pulls them down. Then he goes to shove my skirt up so it bunches together around my waist, leaving my most burning area out in the open. I guess we're getting right to it and I'm dying as it is so I don't waste time either. I go for his pants and get them open. I gasp for a moment, forgetting he doesn't usually wear underwear and his rock hard erection shoots up the second I get the zipper open. I grin at my reaction and then pick my hips up so I can slide onto him. He grips my hips to keep me steady and I latch onto his shoulders even tighter as he is completely inside me. I take a moment to adjust to the feeling and he moves his hand to my hair. He brushes a strand back tenderly and then runs his fingers through the back of my hair. He pulls me to his lips and I moan against them as I start rocking my hips. I hear his breath become more and more irregular as I pick up the pace even more. I slow down, feeling overwhelmed with the painful pleasures running through my body. He wraps his arms around me and carefully picks me up and lies me down on the bed. He starts to slide in and out of me carefully slow as my moans become a stream of lazy slurs.

"Hhuhhh Joey, mmhm," I breathe out. He pulls the end of my shirt up and slides it off me. He reaches around to find the clasp to my bra, unhooks it and then pulls the straps foward until it comes off. He throws it to the ground and then begins to squeeze one breast while sucking on my other nipple. My back arches up and I throw my hands above my head as I let my mouth hang open and more cries of pleasure trail out.

I'm being pretty loud, every thing he's doing it sending me off the edge, but I'm just blaming it on how long it's been since I've had sex.

He moves to the second breast and starts to thrust into me faster. His lips find my open mouth and I bring my hands back to run them through his hair as he kisses me feverishly. Now, he's really picking up the pace and I have to throw my head back again. His hand reaches down in between us and starts rubbing my clit which is sending me completely insane. I start gasping out his name, telling him I'm too close. He doesn't care and wraps his arms around me as he plows into me rapidly. I claw his shirt as I feel an orgasm erupting inside of me. Joey slows down as pleasure is rippling through me. He's kissing my jaw and neck. I finally open my eyes again as I feel him slide out of me. He goes to jerk himself off which is when I realize we never put a condom on. I sit up to stop him. I reach over and grab his arm and then slowly start pulling him towards the pillow. He looks surprised but follows my instruction and lies down. I take him into my mouth and he finally lets out a pained groan. I don't stop until he's shaking. I come up and stroke him until he releases completely.

I lie down on his chest and rise and fall with his heavy breaths until he calms down. He brushes my arm with the back of my hand. I feel so fulfilled, I finally got him and it felt incredible. Now, lying in his arms feels so comforting and I let my mind go and let my thoughts wander for a moment. I start to think and realize I think I now want this just as much as I wanted sex. I guess I was so distracted with the idea of getting his body hat I never really considered what I wanted and now I want more. And now we just slept together and we're not gonna tell anyone. What have I done? I sit up abruptly. He looks at me with a worried expression.

"I should go," I say.

Joey looks at me strange, but I get out of the bed quickly. He looks like he wants to say something, but I quickly grab my clothes and hurry to my own room.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, I run to Monica's after work. I know I told Joey our friends wouldn't find out we slept together, but I never said anything about my secret feelings for Joey that have been developing in overdrive especially since last night.

"Hey Mon, is Chandler here?" I ask the second I rush through the door. She instantly looks concerned by my entrance.

"No, he's getting pizza with Joey and Ross," she tells me.

"Good, I need to talk to you," I state, quickly sitting down at her kitchen table. She grabs a seat too.

"Of course, what's going on?" she reaches for my arm.

"I think... okay I know this might sound a little crazy, but I think... I may like...Joey," I tell her.

" _Like_ like him?" she clarifies and I nod my head yes.

She looks surprised and stays quiet for a moment.

"Really? Since when?" she questions.

"Since the hole in the wall," I admit, embarrassed.

"Cause you saw his thing?" she asks in a judging tone.

"I guess that led to me looking at him in a totally different way and it went from there," I say softly.

Monica can see how serious I'm being, so she wipes the disdainful look off her face.

"Well, is this just a crush or something more?" she presses.

I try to think it over, so overwhelmed with everything I'm feeling. She doesn't wait for me to answer.

"I don't think it's a great idea to start anything too casual. It can get really awkward. I think you should be sure these are serious feelings before you make any kind of move," she advises.

Now, would be the time I should admit we already slept together, but I keep my word and keep it a secret.

I merely nod and tell her I'm going to seriously think everything over.

Luckily, she then grabs me some dinner and we hang out together for a few more hours. It helps me relax my mind for a while and not think about my feelings for Joey nonstop, like I have been all day.

* * *

I walk back across the hall and I can hear Joey in his room. I don't make my presence anymore known and quietly shuffle into my room. I try to really think over my feelings for him. I know that I developed an attraction to him and wanted more than anything to sleep with him. Then, we slept together and it was great... really great, I start craving his touch every time I think about last night. But then the second it was over I got scared because I loved the feeling of being in his arms and the idea of us being more. I like the idea of Joey caring for me and only having eyes for me, but it's Joey. He's never really been a one woman kind of guy. This is crazy, how did this even happen?

Okay, lets think about actually being with Joey. I know he would be wonderful - if he could be faithful, but he also doesn't seem like he wants to settle down anytime soon. Maybe I'm wasting my time, maybe he doesn't even have real feelings for me. We slept together, that's his signature move with any girl. Ugh, my mind is just going in circles, I don't know what I want!

My thoughts are interrupted by a knock on the door that startles me. I know it has to be Joey, who else would it be.

"Come in," I call.

I watch the door open and Joey poke his head in.

"Hey," he says and steps into my room.

"Hey."

He looks a bit nervous.

"Are you okay?" he asks me.

"Yeah why?" I respond casually.

"I meant with last night. I didn't do anything wrong did I?" he asks honestly.

I can't help, but smile at his question. He did everything so right, it's amusing he could ever think he did anything wrong last night.

"No, of course not, why would you think that?" I smile.

He puts his hands in his pockets.

"You ran off kind of quick," he says.

I swallow a nervous lump in my throat and nod. I try to decide what reasoning to give. Should I just tell him the truth? Joey gets too impatient with waiting for a response.

"Do you regret it?" he questions me in a sad tone.

I look back up at him.

"No," I tell him truthfully.

"Me either," he admits.

I can't help, but start to smile brightly. I have to admit I'm pleased he enjoyed last night too.

"Maybe we should talk about it," I say to him.

He walks over and plops down next to me on the edge of my bed.

"Well, I had fun," he tells me sweetly.

"Me too," I reply.

"Does that mean you'd want to do it again?" he asks with a enthusiastic smile.

I can't help, but smile even wider and I guess he takes that at a yes. He leans in excitedly and starts kissing my neck. I close my eyes from the feeling. It feels good. I should stop this, we have to talk seriously about our future. I can't let him keep kissing my neck - but it feels so nice. I'm getting lost in the feeling and already craving his lips to venture so many other places. I have to stop this, I don't want this to be a friends with benefits situation, I don't.

"I don't want this!" I blurt out unexpectedly.

Joey stops abruptly and sits speechless. I look at him, feeling insanely embarrassed by how that must have sounded.

"Sorry, I mean I don't think this should be casual. It's too risky, we're too good of friends and I think if we want to do this again... there needs to be more than just sex," I explain softly.

He stares at me and I'm wondering if this is the end.

"Okay," he says, still not clearing much up.

I nod and look down assuming he will probably get up and leave.

"Are you free Friday night?" he asks.

I'm not gonna lie, my heart flutters in this moment and I don't think I realized how hurt I was about to be if he would have left.

"Yes," I practically whisper, since I'm too excited all of the sudden.

"Okay, I'll pick you up," he grins.

I bite back a chuckle. He gets up from the bed.

"But Joey," I stop him.

He looks at me.

"You really want to try this for real? I mean, I'm just surprised unless you - have you had - do you have -" I keep stopping myself, feeling stupid.

He kneels down in front of me.

"Rach, I've known you for a long time, no guy would give up his chance to take you out," he says in a smoothly sweet voice.

I can't help, but blush. I smile and run my hand down his cheek. He stands and then walks back to his room. I'm truly surprised Joey just walked out without even trying one more time to have sex. Then, again I never would have saw him agreeing to an actual date with me. I'm still questioning whether he has feelings for me. I would hate to think that he's only taking me out so I'll sleep with him again, I don't think Joey would ever do that to someone like me. But I also never thought about Joey having real feelings for me either.


	5. Chapter 5

It's Friday night. I'm going on a date with Joey, woah I'm going on a date with Joey Tribbiani. This doesn't feel real. I stare at myself in the bathroom mirror. I'm fixing up my hair and makeup since I just got home from work. Joey doesn't seem to be home, I guess he was serious about picking me up even though we live together. I smile at this thought. Then, nerves wash over me. This is real, I'm going on a date with one of my closest friends. Then, I think about our one night together and I get excited tingles all over my skin. I'm so tired of going back in forth in my mind, it's been like this all week. I decide I'm going to clear my mind and simply see how the date goes.

I walk out of the bathroom in my dress and heels. I wore a tight, black dress, I must admit I feel pretty damn sexy tonight. Joey and I haven't done anything all week, not even kiss. This really surprised me, I guess there is a gentleman side to Joey. I place my purse on the kitchen island and I hear a knock at the door. I smile and walk over to open it.

Joey is standing on the other side with a a bouquet of lilies in his hand. He has a broad smile on his face.

"Oh Joey, my favorite! Thank you," I beam and take the flowers from him. I look for something to put my new flowers in. I find a vase and add some water. I turn back to find Joey blatantly staring at me. His eyes are fixated on my body. It only excites me to see him staring so intently, looks like this dress is doing its job.

"Joey, you've seen me in this dress before," I say softly.

He blinks and looks back to my face.

"Oh uh yeah I know, sorry, you just... look so great," he scratches the back of his neck, seemingly embarrassed.

I smirk at him and step closer.

"Wow, does Joey Tribbiani get nervous on dates?" I test in a kidding tone.

His mouth curls into a smirk as well.

"No," he claims, but I narrow my eyes at him and cross my arms.

"But he does on a date with you," he adds. I slowly unfold my arms, not expecting to hear him say that.

"Why's that?" I ask.

"Cause you're... so great, I wouldn't want to mess this up," he tells me very sincerely. For the first time, I can see Joey having real feelings for me. I've never seen him genuinely nervous for a date and I suddenly feel so special, I'm someone who actually makes him nervous. I bite my lip back in a smile.

"Well, we should go, we don't want to miss our reservations," I say in a low voice.

He nods and quickly turns to open the door for me.

* * *

We get to the restaurant and so far everything is great. Joey looks very sharp in his suit. I feel like a goddess with the way Joey's been staring at me every chance he gets and now we're sitting down at a great restaurant. Then, our waitress comes over and shakes up the entire night for me.

"Joey?" We hear a surprised voice and we both look up to see our waitress tilting her head at Joey.

I look at Joey who looks lost.

"Yeah?"

"It's me Bethany!" she exclaims gleefully.

"Oh of course, Bethany!" he clearly is only pretending to know who she is. He doesn't fool either of us.

"Bethany remember? We met at the wrap party for Days of our Lives right after they killed you and then we snuck away to my step dad's lake house for the weekend!" she summarizes for us all.

"Oh... yeah, right," Joey remembers, uncomfortably glancing over at me.

I look down at my nails to avoid anymore eye contact.

"Gosh, it's been so long! How's L.A.?" she asks.

"L.A.?" Joey questions her, confused.

I can see out of the corner of my eye, Bethany putting her hand on her hip.

"You said you were moving to L.A., that's why we couldn't keep seeing each other," she reminds him.

He nods frantically.

"Yep, yes that's right. L.A. is great! I'm just in town for a...uh... meeting," he lies.

Bethany looks over to me and probably assumes I'm some executive or agent. I just nod, unsure of what to do.

"Oh! Well then I will do my best not to interrupt. Sorry for the personal rant," she speaks directly to me.

I shake my head and force a friendly smile at her.

"Here are your menus and can I start you two off with sparkling water, wine?" she asks in an overly cheerful tone.

"Wine please," I blurt out.

"Sure, might I recommend our most popular bottle of-" she starts to make a suggestion, but I desperately need any alcohol and I'm sick of her standing here.

"That sounds great, thank you!" I exclaim nervously, cutting her off.

She takes a moment to look at us, but then smiles.

"Sure thing, I'll be right back with your wine," she states and finally walks off.

I pick up my menu and bury my face in it. I'm sure Joey feels bad, but I feel so panicked inside. What am I doing? Joey has dated nearly half the women in all of a New York City. This was such a dumb idea, why did I ever think anything would be different with me? I'm not that special.

Joey tries to apologize and talk to me about what happened, but every time he attempts this, I change the subject or distract him with something random. He finally gives up on apologizing and we continue our awkward dinner. We barely talk since we're worried Bethany might walk back over and realize we're actually on a date rather than having a meeting. I'm also too flustered to say much of anything. Joey looks guilty most of the night.

We finally pay the bill and we walk out of the restaurant. I walk in front of Joey and stand at the curb, looking for a cab.

"Rachel, can we please talk for a moment," Joey tries, walking up beside me.

"Oh I'm sorry, thank you for dinner Joey," I say.

"No, Rach..." he starts.

"It's getting chilly, why don't we try to catch a cab first," I cut him off for the millionth time tonight. When we do catch a cab, Joey decides to keep quiet the whole ride home.

We finally get to our building and silently walk up the stairs. Joey unlocks our door and holds it open for me. I walk inside.

"Rachel wait," he stops me from walking into my room.

I stop and turn to face him, knowing I can't avoid him forever.

"Can I at least apology?" he asks.

"What for? You didn't do anything wrong," I tell him.

He sighs.

"Rachel, come on this is silly," he says.

"If it's so silly, then why are we even talking about it?" I laugh awkwardly.

He looks sad.

"I know why it bothers you," he says.

Now, I really stop from avoiding his stare and pretending to find stuff in my purse. I look at him, but I can't say anything. He walks over to me.

"You're worried about my past now, right?" he speaks softly.

I look down and clutch onto the strap of my purse tighter.

"Look, Rachel I can't change any of that, but I can tell you that I haven't cleaned my sheets all week," he says.

I look at him completely confused.

"What?" I shake my head.

He breathes out a small laugh.

"Okay that was a weird way to say it. I'm saying I haven't gone on any dates this week cause I knew I was going out with you. I'm saying that you don't have to worry about other women because it's just going to be you... if, you know, we continue," he explains to me.

I want to smile because it's sweet, but it doesn't fully erase my worries, he has too much of a dating history. He sees that I'm not fully convinced.

"Can we have a do-over?" he asks.

"Do-over our date?" I clarify.

"Yeah, I don't want to remember our first date like this," he reasons.

I smile, appreciating how much he cares about our date.

"Well, when were you thinking?" I ask.

"How about tomorrow?"

"That's pretty soon," I joke.

"Well, I don't know that I could wait," he smiles innocently and I feel my smile widen.

"Is that a yes?" he grins, always taking my uncontrollable smiles as responses.

"Okay, yes," I agree and he smiles happily now.

"Good cause I also didn't want to ruin my reputation," he adds.

"How would you have done that?"

"Becoming your worst first date ever," he tells me.

I laugh at that.

"Trust me, you _still_ wouldn't be my worst date ever," I shake my head.

"Well, I'm hoping for _best_ first date ever," he gives me a confident look.

"Wow, that might take some work," I challenge him and his smug expression fades a bit.

"Oh yeah, what kind of work we talking?" He grins, making his question sound dirtier than it needs to be.

I press my lips together as I feel a tingle run across my skin from the deep tone of his voice.

"Hm, some planning, maybe some props," I list calmly. His eyebrows rise instantly.

"Props?" he asks, very interested.

"And also a great kiss," I continue, purposely ignoring his curiousity.

He smiles even wider and closes the space between us. He wraps his arms around my lower back and I gently run my hands down his suit jacket.

"A kiss huh?" he asks.

"That's a must," I tell him.

He smiles at me and then leans in to claim my lips. I feel myself go a bit numb feeling his wonderful lips again. I've missed them. I grip onto his jacket as he deepens the kiss more and more. I feel my heels lifting up and a strong urge growing inside of me.

But I push back. He looks confused by this decision.

I step back and he drops his arms, letting me go.

"Looks like we have another date tomorrow," I say.

He swallows and then nods.

"Yes, I can't wait," he whispers and I blush happily.

I want more than anything to rip that suit off him, but I keep still, restraining myself.

"Goodnight Joey," I whisper.

"Goodnight," he replies in a hushed tone.

I force my feet to turn and walk to my bedroom.


	6. Chapter 6

It's nights like these, I kind of wish that hole in the wall wasn't fixed. I keep thinking about sneaking next door, into Joey's bedroom. I keep thinking about the one night we had together, craving more, but it's the right thing to wait. We honestly shouldn't have slept together so fast and we shouldn't rush things now when there is so much at stake. I suppose it's just tough being so close. I must say, regardless of the uncomfortable first date we just had, I'm surprised at Joey, at how he is actually serious about us. I guess I couldn't believe he had developed actual feelings for me too, but more and more he shows me how serious he is. I'm excited about tomorrow, I'm hoping it goes well.

* * *

The next day, I go shopping with Phoebe and Monica to have a girls afternoon. Monica avoids bringing up Joey since I never told Phoebe. I'm actually relieved, I don't want to talk about Joey too much since I don't know what's going to happen and maybe it's best if the whole gang doesn't know we tried and failed. But the whole day I'm lost in thoughts about Joey and what our date is going to be. I wonder what he has planned, if he planned anything.

I head home late afternoon to relax and begin to get ready for my date. Again, Joey has made himself scarce and I have no clue where he is.

* * *

Around six, I hear a knock on the door. I go to answer it and Joey is standing on the other side, this time holding nothing. "Hello," I smile widely at him.

"Hey, ready for our date?" he whispers like it's a huge secret, although it actually is.

"Yes, where are we going?" I ask and I turn to grab my purse from the counter. He stops me by lightly holding onto my arm, so I turn back to him.

"It's a surprise, would you - close your eyes?" he asks.

Now, I'm very caught off guard, I can't tell if this is going to be some annoying prank or something I'm actually going to like.

I sigh and close my eyes. I feel him take my hand and start to lead me down the hall.

"You have to step up now," he tells me.

"Up?"

He doesn't say anything else and leads me up multiple flights of stairs. I hear a door open and he leads me through it.

"Okay," he says and he lets go of my hand. I hear him walk away from me.

"Joey?" I ask, still keeping my eyes closed.

"You can open," he says and I open my eyes and find him standing right in front of me with a wine glass in his hand.

"Thanks?" I accept the glass, looking around and realizing we're on the roof of our building.

"What are we doing up here?" I ask and then he moves aside and I see a table with candles, wine, and food all laid out. There are candles on the edge of the building around the table as well. I'm shocked and impressed.

"Joey, you did this?" I ask.

"Well, I just ordered the food, don't tell anyone," he jokes as he leads me over to the table. I can't believe this. I look up at him in amazement.

"I figured we wouldn't run into anyone out here and we can be alone," he explains as if I need an explanation.

I smile, shaking my head. He pulls out one of the chairs for me. I sit down.

"This is so nice Joey, I'm really surprised," I say.

Joey sits down across from me.

"Why, you didn't think I could be romantic?" he questions me.

"I... don't know, I just didn't expect this, but it's a good thing, I like a surprise," I tell him and he smiles happily. He starts uncovering the rest of the food and it looks really fancy, I would have never believed he cooked this food if he didn't own up to buying it right away.

"Wow, this looks amazing," I express.

"So, do you," he suddenly compliments me. I look up, he's staring at me so seriously. I feel my face start to flush, my stomach is filling with butterflies. I smile at him and he stands to grab my plate. He begins to fill my plate up with delicious looking food. He places my plate in front of me and moves onto his.

"Thank you," I say and then watch him as he finishes filling his plate and starts cutting into the chicken. I pick up my silverware and start digging in.

"Mhm, this is delicious, where did you get this from?" I ask.

"I can't tell you all my secrets," he grins, stuffing another huge forkful into his mouth. I smirk, letting my question go.

We enjoy the rest of our dinner, talking about normal things Joey and I would talk about. We've been sitting, done with our meals, for a while now. Joey gets up and refills our wine glasses when our conversation seems to be dying down.

"Wanna look at the view?" he offers.

I pick up my wine glass and stand up with him.

"I've seen it," I chuckle at him.

He frowns.

"I know, but I thought it'd be nice to look at the stars - and I brought this for us," he says and then hurries over to a bag he brought and whips out a blanket and two throw pillows.

I give him a look.

"It's just to keep us warm," he defends, catching onto my judging look.

He walks over and puts his hand out.

"Come on, I'm great at cuddling," he brags.

I chuckle and take his hand. He leads me over to a block of metal. He leans the pillows against them so we can rest our backs against the pillows. I sit down and he places the blanket over me as I place my wine glass off to the side on the ground next to me. He brings over most of the candles and lays them out on the roof edge in front of us. Then he jumps down and gets under the blanket next to me. His arm wraps around me and I snuggle against him. I smile against his shoulder, this is so nice, who knew Joey was so romantic. I watch the candle flames flicker in the night until Joey breaks the silence.

"So, have any memorable dreams last night?" he asks.

I pick my head up giving him another look. Of course he is back to this.

"Unfortunately not, what about you?" I test him back playfully.

"I had a dream that I was on this roof with the most beautiful woman, drinking wine and looking at the stars," he says smoothly. Which makes me feel guilty for a moment thinking he was only rehashing that old dream I had. His answer was a bit clique, but it still makes my heart flutter. I smile, looking down for a moment.

"And then whatever happened in your dream," he adds.

I look back at him and see a wide grin across his face. I knew it.

"What do you _think_ happened?" I decide to ask him. My question doesn't even catch him off guard.

"I don't know, I just imagine _everything_ and it's all super hot."

I shake my head, smirking.

"Fine, you want to know what happened in the dream?" I say and he perks up, excitement gleaming in his eyes.

"Yeah," he responds quickly.

I look down and realize what I want to do.

"How about I show you," I suggest slyly.

He stares at me, I think too nervous to ask if I'm serious or not this time. I press my lips together and then slide my hands under the blanket. He doesn't take his eyes off me. I take a hold of his hand and pull it up to my face. I place it on a strand of my hair and let go. He gets the idea and proceeds to brush the strand back. Then, I lean in and kiss him even though this should have been his move from the dream, but I don't actually want to instruct him step by step, I'll just make it happen. He happily kisses me back and I end the kiss by biting his bottom lip, again stealing his move in the dream. I can tell this surprises him a bit. He clearly likes it though and goes to kiss me more, but I lean back. He waits and I stare back at him and then climb on top of his lap, still under the blanket, to continue our dream reenactment. He watches me, waiting for what's about to happen next. I feel myself getting excited, which is surprising since this dream caused me so much agony at the time. I reach down and take a hold of his hand again. I direct his hand to my thigh and start to slowly guide it up, in between my legs. Luckily, I'm wearing a dress again otherwise his wouldn't be so simple. I watch his lips part as he steadily watches where I'm leading his hand. I keep gliding his hand foward until it reaches the front of my panties. He still allows me to make every move. I use my other hand to pull my panties aside and then move his hand right against my second pair of heated lips. This is turning me on way more than I expected it to. I move his fingers up and down my entrance once or twice before I let his hand go. He doesn't waste a second and continues this motion on his own. I take my other hand back and rest my hands on his shoulders as he continues to lightly stroke and tease me. I lean foward.

"That's it," I breathe.

He pauses his movements, but keeps his hand in between my legs.

"You never finished," I tell him the ending of the dream, still in a whisper.

He stares up at me. His only response is his finger gently pushing in between my folds. He pushes his finger inside of me, pressing his thumb down on my clit. He begins to slide his finger in and out. I bite my lip, realizing how good it feels.

"Joey...," I breathe in a worried tone, realizing we're outside, on a roof, and maybe we shouldn't be doing this. He calms my nerves by using his other hand to pull my chin foward and kiss me. I fall numb to his kisses mixed with the pleasure his fingers are causing. He starts to pump his finger more rapidly and I instantly moan out, burying my head into his shoulder.

"Mhmm, Joey...I..." I try to start some sentence, but who am I kidding, this feels to good to stop.

I feel my inner walls contracting and suddenly an orgasm is rippling through me.

Joey removes his hand and wraps his arms around me as I'm calming down.

I finally sit back up. I smile guilty, about to comment about how risky we're being, but within another minute, he leans foward and kisses me hungrily, making me forget how to form sentences again.

I kiss him back, already starting to feel renewed excitement running through my veins. His hands start roaming all over my body, squeezing my breasts through my clothes and running back down to where he just pleasured me. I reach down to start opening his pants.

He breaks away, leaving me a bit breathless since I was still reeling from my recent climax before we started fervently making out.

"I don't have a condom," he says.

Even though we forgot to use one last time, I agree we should definitely be more careful and I'm glad he thought of it rather than deciding to just pull out every time.

"Well, then I'll just return the favor," I smile naughtily and continue to open his pants. I grab the edge of the blanket still around us and throw it above my head as I slide my body down his so my mouth can comfortably rest by his crotch. I caress his balls and I run my tongue up the shaft and settle my lips over the tip.

I take him into my mouth and keep a steady pace until I feel him start to squirm. Then, I tighten my grip and quicken my pace until he is climaxing hard and fast.

I wipe my mouth on the now dirty blanket and then crawl back out from under the blanket. He watches me with heavy breathes as I lean in and kiss him. I feel him smile around my lips.

"What?" I ask, keeping my lips close as I continue to kiss him again and again.

"This was a first for me," he tells me.

I stop and sit back.

"First what?" I question him, confused.

"I've never done more than make out on this roof," he shares.

Surprisingly, this doesn't make me panic about what girls he has made out with or how many girls he has done who knows what with. Instead, it actually makes me feel special. The last thing I expected was to share a first with Joey in the sex department. It might be weird, but I'm happy he shared it with me.

I start to grin, feeling pretty accomplished and also a bit scandalous.

"Well, me too ... _obviously_ ," I respond.

"That's obvious?" he questions me genuinely.

I'm caught off guard by his question. I don't see myself as that wild especially with dating, so I would assume this would be obvious for me.

"Yeah, why what did you think?" I answer, almost laughing like any other assumptions are so far from who I am.

"I don't know, you always surprise me," he tells me.

Now, I'm even more thrown.

"I do?"

"Yeah, I mean I wasn't expecting this or us or anything that's happened," he says and I'm not sure if this is a bad thing now. I think he senses my sudden worry.

"But it's a good thing - I like a surprise too," he relaxes me and envokes another bright smile from me as I recognize my own words.

God, he makes me feel so great.

I lean in and kiss him again. I snuggle back under his arm. He holds me close and we sit here for another few hours.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:** Hey everyone, sorry if this is a short ending, but here it is thank you to everyone who has read and reviewed!

* * *

The next day I wake up feeling really happy. How did my date with Joey go so well? I know I was hoping for it to go well, but I didn't think it would go as great as it did. Now, I feel like I'm floating - I really like him, maybe too much now. I can't believe I'm falling for one of my best friends.

Joey and I slept in our separate rooms last night, so I get up and head out to the kitchen alone. Joey must still be asleep. I think about sneaking in his room to wake him up, but I decide I want to tell Monica everything first. I spill it all to her. She's shocked, not just from the fact that we've already slept together, but also the romantic date he set up and how obvious it is that I am falling for him.

"Wow, so this might actually be getting serious," she says.

"I know!" I squeal happily.

"So, can I tell Chandler now?" she asks.

I freeze.

"Well, maybe Joey and I should tell everyone... also Chandler might be offended if he doesn't hear it from Joey," I think aloud.

"That's true, I didn't think of that. I just hate keeping this from him, it's been killing me," she whines.

"I know, you know what, I'll talk to Joey today about what we're going to do," I tell her.

"Okay, good," Monica says.

She starts smiling at me.

"What?"

"I just can't believe... you and Joey! I never saw this coming," she notes.

Neither did I, but now I couldn't be happier that it did.

* * *

I head back to the apartment to talk to Joey. He is up and eating cereal at the island. He smiles at me when I walk through the door. I can't help, but instantly smile widely back.

I walk over and kiss his sugary lips.

"I really had fun last night," I tell him.

"Me too," he says turning on the stool so his body is facing mine. He hooks his fingers into the pockets of my jeans and pulls me closer. I chuckle as he kisses me again, almost making me forget what I wanted to talk to him about.

"So, I need to talk to you," I tell him. He looks worried for a second.

"It's not bad - just maybe a little scary," I add, which doesn't relax his expression that much.

"Okay shoot," he says, still a bit on edge.

"We need to tell our friends," I state.

He breathes a sigh of relief.

"Oh thank god, I hate keeping secrets, it's been killing me," he responds.

I smile, loving that fact that he didn't want to keep us a secret.

"What?" he questions my sudden smile.

"I'm glad you want to tell everyone," I say.

"Why wouldn't I?"

"Well, it makes things pretty official then," I tell him.

"You're right," he starts and then he looks down and suddenly I'm worried for his response.

"I can't wait," he whispers with a grin.

I widen my eyes at him, telling him not to scare me like that. He laughs.

* * *

Later, everyone is hanging out at Monica's and we decided we would share our news the next time the whole group is together. Joey and I look at each other after we've been hanging with everyone for a little while.

"Uh, guys Joey and I have some news," I announce. Everyone looks over and I instantly see Monica get excited. Everyone waits.

"Joey and I are... kind of a thing," I say.

Phoebe's mouth hangs open.

"What, really?" Phoebe exclaims excitedly.

"Yeah," Joey smiles and takes my hand in his. I look to Ross nervously and Joey does too when he sees me do this.

"Are you uh, okay with this Ross?" Joey asks nervously.

"Wow... well, I ...this is a shock, I ..." he starts and we let go of each other's hands worried this is about to destroy the group and one of our best friends.

He sees our worry and our hands separate.

"I ... will be okay with it," he tells us.

We still look concerned.

"Really?" Joey asks.

Ross smiles.

"Yes, you two are my best friends, I want you to be happy," he says and we smile.

"This is so cute," Phoebe says.

Monica turns to Chandler.

"Aren't you excited babe?" she questions him.

"Yeah, of course. What about you?" he responds casually.

"Yes of course I just thought you might be a _little_ surprised," Monica points out.

Chandler guilty looks down and then at Joey.

"Actually, Joey told me," he admits and Joey looks at me with an apologetic look.

"You knew?" Monica exclaims shocked.

"Yeah, I wasn't allowed to tell you," Chandler worriedly answers.

"Oh my god, this whole time I was dying keeping this from _you_!" Monica exclaims.

"Wait, _you_ knew?" Chandler questions her surprised.

They both look at us and we look at each other guilty.

"I had to tell her," I defend.

"I couldn't lie to Chandler," Joey says.

"Hey hey! Why were Ross and I left in the dark?" Phoebe yells insulted.

We all look at her.

"Oh well, we were the _most_ nervous to tell you two, cause you two mean even more to us," Rachel exaggerates although I'm sure she was the most nervous to tell Ross.

Phoebe smiles and looks at Monica and Chandler with a triumphant expression.

"Makes sense," she replies.

"Well, I'm glad everyone knows now, no more secrets," Monica says.

We all hang out for a while and Joey and I even cuddle on the couch, so happy we can finally put our new relationship on display.

I look at Joey and realize I couldn't be happier. Who knew that someone who's been in my life for five years could suddenly make me feel so special, so perfect. Who knows if this is forever, but right now I'm only thinking about being in Joey's arms, surrounded by my friends. I'm so glad he punched that stupid hole in the wall or maybe I never would have saw like I do now. I never would have saw how romantic he is, how loving he is, how handsome he really is. He's perfect and I don't think they'll be any walls dividing us now, he's finally all mine.


End file.
